Tuesday, December 18, 2012

Christmas will come a little bit early for "tweens" visiting
Galveston this month, as the island hosts two very popular TV stars.

Spencer Boldman from Disney XD's "Lab Rats" and Jake Short from
Disney Channel’s "A.N.T. Farm" will be in Galveston to sign autographs
and take pictures with visitors Dec. 22 and Dec. 29, respectively.* The
stars will be on the island for "Magical Parties with Disney" hosted by
the Galveston Island Convention & Visitors Bureau and Radio Disney
AM 1590.

The parties will be held from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. the last two Saturdays
in December at downtown Galveston’s Saengerfest Park, located at the
corner of Strand and 23rd streets.

• Dec. 22 – Spencer Boldman from Disney XD's "Lab
Rats" will sign autographs and take pictures with visitors while the
Radio Disney AM 1590 Road Crew entertains the crowd.

• Dec. 29 – Jake Short from Disney Channel’s "A.N.T.
Farm" will sign autographs and take pictures with visitors while the
Radio Disney AM 1590 Road Crew entertains the crowd.

* Talent can only meet as many fans as time permits.

Holiday Magic in Galveston

Galveston is the "Winter Wonder Island" of Texas,
offering visitors more than 1,000 magical events to enjoy during the
holiday season. The Magical Parties with Disney events are featured on
the island’s new Passport to Holiday Magic celebration, where visitors
can access a downloadable "passport" to keep track of the island’s many
events while earning a chance to win a Disney Magic cruise for four. To
get your passport, visit http://www.galveston.com/holidaymagic.

Monday, December 03, 2012

Disney Channel have released a behind the scenes look of the Austin & Ally and Jessie crossover special, 'Austin &
Jessie & Ally All Star New Year.'

In the episode episode, Austin, Ally, Trish and Dez have trouble
getting through New York’s crowded Times Square on New Year’s Eve, but Jessie
comes up with a plan to get them to the stage in time to see Austin perform —
and ultimately have him record one of her songs, natch. Bonus: The episode
includes a duet by Debby Ryan and Ross Lynch.

Ready or not, there's a new young female star breaking out from the Disney Channel.

4:29PM EST December 2. 2012 - Bridgit
Mendler is following in the footsteps of Hillary Duff, Miley Cyrus and
Selena Gomez, parlaying her popularity on the Disney Channel into
success in the music world. Mendler, 19, seems well-suited to the role,
having branched out from Radio Disney and realized a legitimate top 40
hit with Ready or Not. "I guess I meet a type or something," says
the actress/singer/songwriter, who played a recurring character on
Disney Channel's Wizards of Waverly Place before getting her own series, Good Luck Charlie,
which will enter its fourth season in 2013. "I try not to think too
much about the other artists that have come before or are coming up. You
can't compare that, because each person has a different path they want
to go down."

A princess is born: Mendler co-wrote every song on her debut album, Hello My Name Is …,
released in October. But she has been writing songs since she was 6 or
7, when she composed a ditty about "little baby Jesus, resting in a
manger" inspired by her younger brother's Play-Doh nativity scene.
Mendler made her stage debut around that same time, playing Princess
Multiplication in her first-grade play: "I sang a song about how you
can't multiply with zero."

Musical anglophile: Though
Mendler was born in Washington, D.C., and has lived in California since
she was 8, her debut album unmistakably bears the influence of British
neo-soul. Mendler expresses fondness for artists like Ellie Goulding,
Florence + the Machine, Marina and the Diamonds and Lianne La Havas. "I
love British sassiness, and their style is so cool," she says. "If I
could be born again as a Brit? Love that."

Didn't she blow your mind this time?: Yes, Mendler was aware of The Delfonics' 1968 hit Ready or Not Here I Come (Can't Hide From Love) – or, more accurately, The Fugees' 1996 Ready or Not
that borrowed the chorus from the Philadelphia soul group – when she,
Emanuel "Eman" Kiriakou and Evan Bogart wrote their song. "One of the
writers played The Fugees' Ready or Not, and we were, like,
'Let's do an interpolation; that'd be kind of fun,'" she says. "So we
did that and became familiar with The Delfonics' version also and kind
of came up with our own. So it was intentional." The song is No. 25 on
USA TODAY's top 40 airplay chart and has sold 356,000 copies, according
to Nielsen SoundScan.Actress, singer, student: Mendler
will enter the University of Southern California as a freshman in
January. "My plan right now is just to do one class at a time and see
how that goes," she says. "I'm just going to study something that will
be interesting and doable from the road and just take care of my general
education courses for now." She hopes to get a degree eventually,
though she doesn't plan to major in an entertainment-related field.
She's currently considering arts history. "I want to know something
outside of what I do." Mendler's mother will be at USC at the same time,
pursuing a doctorate. "She's such an overachiever," Mendler says.Next year and beyond: Mendler
will play several radio-station shows, including New York's Z100 Jingle
Ball, between now and the end of the year. She hopes to do a larger
tour in 2013. "I have Good Luck Charlie for the first half of the
year," she says. "We'll probably put some touring dates in after that.
I'm probably also going to do a few international dates on the hiatuses
during Good Luck Charlie's shooting time." Beyond Disney Channel –
and her music and school – Mendler's got her eye on feature films. "I
don't want to bust out into some edgy thing, because I do value the
audience that's there. I also think there's a way to be a grown-up
without being that. But I'd love to be in an action movie or some fun
comedy – that'd be awesome. I feel like it's a good time to dream big."

Teen sitcom stars Jennette McCurdy and Ariana Grande weren’t even born yet when Nickelodeon was launched in 1979.

Their long-running series, iCarly and Victorious, are getting a combined spin-off show, called Sam and Cat.
Nickelodeon announced the pilot order in August, and has ordered 20
episodes. Production begins in January 2012, in Los Angeles.

Similarly, Disney was two years away from purchasing ABC when Boy Meets World became a Friday night hit in 1993. Disney Channel acquired Boy Meets World in 2000, and introduced characters Cory Matthews and Topanga Lawrence to a new generation of teens and preteens.

Now, Disney Channel is developing a pilot for Boy spinoff. Ben Savage and Danielle Fishel will reprise their characters in Girl Meets World, which will follow the trials and tribulations of their 13-year-old TV daughter, Riley.

The original creators, veteran producers Dan Schneider and Michael Jacobs, lead the charge for Sam and Girl respectively.

McCurdy and the star of iCarly, Miranda Cosgrove, were
frequently nominated for prestigious billings for kid programs, such as
the Teen Choice Awards, Kids’ Choice Awards, and Primetime Emmys. Both
Grande, 19, and McCurdy are talented vocalists.

McCurdy, 21, will continue her role as Sam Puckett. She and Grande’s
character will become unlikely room mates who start a babysitting
business together.Girl Meets World is still early in development, but Savage will play a history teacher, like his Boy Meets World mentor, ‘Mr. Feeny.’ A nationwide search is on for daughter Riley Matthews, and her edgy best friend Maya. Boy
and its actors were nominated for dozens of Kids’ Choice and Young
Artist awards; Savage and Fishel won some, along with several co-stars.

The maturation of the kids in these programs reflects the maturation
of Disney Channel and Nickelodeon. While ‘mature’ might sound like the
kiss of death for a youth-oriented business, it’s not the case here.
Though both channels started in the 70s, they reinvented themselves
approximately 20 years later, with drastic focus change. Disney Channel
switched from pay to basic cable, and began replacing its old, recycled
acquired programming (think Walt Disney Presents) with original movies and star-making episodic series (think Lizzie McGuire).

Nickelodeon was ahead of the curve in animation, with Ren & Stimpy and Rugrats, but its late-tween, early teen programming was getting long in the tooth (think reruns of Clarissa Explains It All and Are You Afraid Of The Dark?). By 1996, Nick began launching series featuring talent that appeared in Schneider’s All That, such as Kenan & Kel, The Amanda Show, and later Drake & Josh and Zoey 101, starring Jamie Lynn Spears.

In other words, these channels laid a solid foundation of original,
character-driven programming, which can now spawn second and third
generation hits. While Boy Meets World was not developed at
Disney Channel but rather, Buena Vista Television, its saturation and
promotion on the channel assured that Disney could mine the intellectual
property decades later.

Saturday, December 01, 2012

TWIST just chatted with Kelli Berglund from Lab Rats!
She gave us the deets on the new season of the show and her work with
the charity Audrey Hepburn Cares. Check out the exclusive convo below!
XOXO,
TWISTTWIST: Can you tell us what to expect from the new season of Lab Rats?KB: There's a lot of new things happening this season. Season one
was the introduction to all of our characters but season two is more
about deep secrets being revealed. It's going to be really exciting for
the audience.TWIST: What would TWIST readers love most about the new season?KB: I think they'd really like to see my character Bree growing
into herself. She sets that example for girls since I'm the only girl on
the show. This season Bree's more confident and inspires girls to
become more confident in themselves and comfortable with who they are. TWIST: What's in store for Bree this season?KB: Bree actually has a few more love interests this season and
some that are more serious than just the typical crush. Also, there are
some really big episodes coming up that involve a lot of action. It's
really cool to see Bree do those kinds of things.TWIST: How are you similar to your character?KB: When I first went to a new school I was a little bit insecure
because I wanted to fit in with everybody, and that's exactly what Bree
wants to do. This is her first time out in the real world, and she just
wants people to like her. TWIST: What's the vibe like on the set of Lab Rats?KB: It's like one big family! From the minute we all stepped on
to the set it was just so much fun everyday and the cast and I are very
close. TWIST: You recently participated in the Millions of Milkshakes
for Audrey Hepburn Cares. Can you tell us a little bit more about the
event?KB: Yes, I'm involved with the Audrey Hepburn Cares team at the
Children's Hospital of LA and it's a great organization. It deals with
child abuse and I've felt strongly about the cause since I read a book
two years ago about a little boy who had to deal with his family
treating him poorly. I wanted to make a difference through this cause. TWIST: Do you have any upcoming projects our readers can look forward to?KB: I'm just filming season two of Lab Rats, hopefully that will
lead to a third and fourth season. I'd love to do some Disney movies and
then some featured films. I just want to keep acting. TWIST: Thanks Kelli!KB:Thanks TWIST!